Who We Are

By “we” I mean the United States of America. Are we really homogeneous enough to be one country? We know our name says the United States but are we really United? Do we really belong together? And if we don’t what do we do about it?

What are we and Alabama doing in the same country? How can this primitive piece of earth be hiding in plain view and be considered one of the 50 states that makes up the most powerful country the world has ever seen?

The key word to kick off this discussion is Alabama. What are we and Alabama doing in the same country? How can this primitive piece of earth be hiding in plain view and be considered one of the 50 states that makes up the most powerful country the world has ever seen? Somehow a little toxic bubble sits in the South called Alabama and is permitted to survive without anyone busting it. Like a wart that the dermatologist has neglected to burn off. Like a pimple that you have neglected to squeeze. Not out of malice or meanness. Just out of not noticing.

Well now we have noticed and, to a great extent, its importance has been polarized by the most powerful person on planet earth. The mega tweeter Donald Trump .

On November 21st he made a simple statement that laid it right out there. Two people are running for Senator to replace Jeff Sessions ….the hit man for Trump’s prosecution of all minorities and immigrants. The question of how Jeff Sessions remained senator from Alabama for 10 years just proves how low a profile Alabama was able to maintain. Masquerading as a State, it has now sprung into prominence, a game changer that feels too much like the final nail in a coffin, that coffin being our democracy.

Mean-spirited, two-dimensional little Alabama where the majority feels that the greatest sin is abortion. Even though they don’t like Roy Moore, and many admire the democrat Doug Jones, he is pro choice. That is the consummate no-no. In other words, when a girl who is just passing by an alley and is jumped by a lunatic, or a 13-year-old girl is raped by her father, or a waitress is violated at knife point by a deranged chef, they should be forced to have the baby. Abortion for any reason is apparently the core from which they spring in good old all American Alabama. Simple-minded little Alabama.

Well, on December 12th two people are running to replace the rodent Jeff Sessions former Senator from Alabama.. They are Republican Roy Moore, former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, removed twice from the bench for violating the Constitution. He insisted that “God’s law” was more important than “man’s law.” So he flew the Confederate flag and mounted the Ten Commandments in front of the State House. The separation of Church and State mandated in the Constitution be damned. He was the mouthpiece for God and that was that.

Roy Moore, famous for sexual harassment of women of all ages beginning at 14, big time supporter of the KKK, champion of the right not just to bear arms but to bear them proudly, as he often does, and to use them without restriction. He’s anti-choice of course, and the supporter of all things that restrict the rights and privileges of the people, but loose as a goose when it comes to rights & privileges for his supporters, the billionaires of Alabama and who knows where else. Dark money swirls around the person of Roy Moore. Hate, racism, contempt for justice….the usual accoutrements of the un-evolved of this world.

He has been challenged by Democrat Doug Jones, attorney who defeated the KKK responsible for the killing of the four little girls who were attending that famous church in Alabama, a pro-choice progressive who is exactly the opposite of the Republican Neanderthal in the ten gallon hat. Yes, Moore is that much of a cliché.

Trump was very quiet at first during this contest. First of all, since Roy Moore was being publicly nailed as a child predator and women molester, Trump wasn’t going to touch that, because when it comes to those two sick sports, no one beats Trump at that game. So he decided to stay in the shadows on that one. “Let the people of Alabama decide” he said, and sneaked back into whatever door he had come out of.

But last Tuesday, November 21st, Trump emerged from his hiding place, announced his support for the white Christian evangelist disgraced judge because “the last thing we need in the Senate is a liberal Democrat.” He accused Doug Jones of opposing the 2nd Amendment (a lie, but Jones does support gun control) “is wrong on the border” (Jones is not in favor of Trump’s insane border wall) “who supports immigrant rights” (Jones opposes the kidnapping, deportation and jailing of innocent immigrants and the tragic breakups of their families….Trump’s favorite accomplishment so far) and “is soft on crime” (Jones believes in government of laws not lynching, kidnapping, deportation, private immigrant prisons)…

“Why,” asked a member of the press, “is it better to have a child molester in office than a liberal Democrat.” Trump staunchly defended Moore by saying…..”Well he denied it”…and he quickly ducked into whatever building he was in front of.

And there we have it friends: The naked unavoidable question from which we can no longer hide. Who are we?! Roy Moore and his wife who represent white Christian Evangelists and insist this planet belongs to them, or are we three-dimensional human beings who insist the planet is meant to nurture the human race in all of its diversity, not destroy it.

Should the United States of America be in fact one country when there is such a difference of opinion in state after state. Was the South right? Should they in fact have seceded? Let’s be honest. Are we sorry they didn’t? As they continue to fight for statues and tributes to confederate leaders, as they insist upon waving their confederate flag, should they not be permitted to genuinely consider if they are in the right country or do they need a country of their own.

And just as important….do we? In fact, a deeper look at secession makes us wonder if we are being honest by continuing to insist that we are the UNITED States of America. Disunited would be closer. “Separated” and becoming more so under this trap of Trump and his monster corps, could nail it.

How many countries should we be? Four maybe. The North East, The South, The Midwest, and the West Coast. (California, Oregon and the state of Washington. Mmm sounds good.)

DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed here are those of the individual contributor(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the LA Progressive, its publisher, editor or any of its other contributors.

About Lila Garrett

Lila Garrett, who is a Emmy award winning television screenwriter, has a passion for politics. She is the popular radio host of KPFK's "Connect the Dots" which airs on Pacifica Radio and is a regular contributor to the LA Progressive.

Comments

Had Bernie bothered to campaign in the South we might be talking about a president Sanders. Instead, we’re talking about crazies like Trump in the White House and right wing extremists like Moore on the verge of possibly gaining a seat in the Senate. So while congress turns to the right the American public becomes ever more frustrated and disgusted with our political system that favors the rich against the poor and middle class. So I’d vote to dump every last member of congress who voted for the Republican tax plan. If the Democrats regain the House in the mid terms perhaps they might even find the courage to bring impeachment proceedings against Trump. But I wouldn’t bet on it.

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Cheryl Dorsey: Beck is leaving two years before completing his second term. I bet if you were to ask the parents of Ezell Ford—the unarmed 25-year-old black man killed by LAPD officers in 2014—they’d probably say that they wished Beck had left a lot sooner.